A stranger grabbed a young girl on her front porch in Roopville before she broke free and ran inside to get help. Police caught the man after neighbors chased him down.
🏃 What Happened: Police say Nicholas Gosdin approached the 10-year-old girl on July 4th while she sat on her porch on Old Highway 27 South. He tried to talk to her about construction materials to get her to come closer. When she wouldn’t leave the porch, police say he grabbed both her arms and tried to hold her. The brave girl broke away and ran inside to tell her parents.
Her family rushed outside and confronted Gosdin, who ran away on foot. A neighbor followed him in a car as he ran toward Roopville Elementary School. The neighbor held Gosdin in the woods near the school until deputies arrived.
🚨 Why It Matters: Parents in Carroll County need to know about this scary incident so they can talk to their kids about stranger danger and stay alert in their neighborhoods.
👮 Behind Bars: Gosdin now faces four serious charges – simple battery, cruelty to children, false imprisonment, and kidnapping. A judge denied him bond on Monday, meaning he stays in jail while his case moves forward.
🔍 What Police Need: Deputies want to hear from anyone who saw Gosdin in the Roopville area that day. They also need home security videos or doorbell camera footage that might show him. People can call Investigator Ametrice Jackson at 770-830-5916.
🏘️ The Big Picture: This case shows how important it is for neighbors to look out for each other. The quick thinking of the child, her parents, and the neighbor who followed Gosdin likely prevented something much worse from happening. Police say no one in the area knew Gosdin or why he was there, which makes this incident even more concerning for families.
⚠️ Reminder: Crime articles contain only charges and information from police reports and law enforcement statements. Suspects and defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
B.T. Clark
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
